The 2014 FIFA World Cup gets underway as host Brazil take on Croatia in the opening match on Thursday, 4 p.m. EST, at the Arena Corinthians in Sao Paolo.

The pressure mounts for the Brazilian side as they try to impress and win the World Cup in front of their home crowd, but coach Luiz Felipe Scolari expressed excitement over their tournament debut.

"For all Brazilians, I want to say our time has arrived," Scolari said via ESPN. "We want to go together. This is our World Cup."

Scolari added that they can't look past Croatia, saying that their tournament opener against a less-favored opponent is a big step towards their goal.

"We have seven steps," Scolari said. "We have to go up these seven but, to start, we have to think of the first step. We can't jump to seven. So the idea I transmit to my team is that we have the first step against Croatia."

Neymar, who is an early favorite to win the Golden Boot Award in the upcoming tournament, is expected to carry a heavy load on his shoulders.

But while the Barcelona forward is considered by most experts as the barometer of Brazil's success in the tournament, Neymar refused to take all the credit, saying that he is not thinking about his individual performance and is focused on winning the World Cup through team effort.

"I don't want to be the best player in the World Cup, I don't want to be the top scorer, I want to win the World Cup," 22-year-old Neymar said. "I will work 100 percent on the pitch to help my other players. Nobody plays alone."

Croatia manager Niko Kovac, who, at 42, is the second-youngest manager in the World Cup, knows that defeating Brazil in front of a hostile crowd is no easy task.

Kovac is also aware that they will have their hands full against Neymar, but he is confident that team captain Darijo Srna, who has 113 caps under his belt, will be able to slow down the Brazilian star.

"I'm not losing my sleep. I had six months to study the Brazil team. Our captain Dario (Srna) has an answer for Neymar. We know what we can expect," Kovac said via Telegraph. "In Croatia we also have world-class players. And as we are thinking about them, they are also thinking of us."

Fans can catch the 2014 FIFA World Cup opener live on ESPN and via live stream through WatchESPN.

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